In conversations about the role of quality standards in public health, you might come across the words “compendia” and “compendial.” At USP, terms like “compendial approaches,” “compendial standards,” and “compendial tools” are part of our everyda

The quality of herbal supplements has been the subject of an ongoing investigation initiated earlier this month by the New York Attorney General’s office. However, the supplement industry has strongly questioned the DNA barcoding technology used by the AG's office and some even point to their compliance with USP monographs. This raises an important question - what does it mean to be in compliance with USP standards for dietary supplements?

Each January, countless Americans begin the year by making promises to improve their lives or the lives of their family. Many New Year’s resolutions involve ways to improve health. A list of the most popular resolutions according to U.S. government sources includes: lose weight, eat healthy, get fit, stop smoking, and manage stress.

Herbal products are often seen by consumers as safe because they derive from plants. However, lack of understanding of the plants and their interactions with prescription and over-the-counter medicines may contribute to some herbal products' inefficacy and some might even cause serious reactions, as Gabriel Goancaspro, Ph.D. explains.

Recent news stories have pointed to concerns about the quality of dietary supplements. Yet most Americans take vitamins, minerals or other dietary supplements as a part of their daily health regimen. To choose a quality supplement, look for the USP Verified Mark, which indicates the supplement not only meets regulatory requirements, but was made to even higher quality standards and subject to third party testing.

Before the Dietary Supplement Health and Education Act (DSHEA) defined dietary supplements as a sub-set of foods, questions about how they would be regulated created heated discussion in the US market.

Since its beginnings, the United States Pharmacopeial Convention (USP) has been concerned with setting quality standards for botanicals and minerals. On the eve of the 20th anniversary of the Dietary Supplement Health and Education Act (DSHEA), Dr. Srini Srinivasan, Executive Vice President, Special Assignments and Chief Science Officer at USP, reflects on the dramatic growth of the dietary supplement industry, USP’s changing role as a standards setting body and the impact of DSHEA.